Action against medical staff demanded
SHILLONG: In an unfortunate incident, a pregnant woman has lost her life after the authorities of a health centre in West Jaintia Hills refused to admit her on the pretext that its blood bank does not have blood.
The 31-year-old woman, Klotilda Suting of Thadmusem village under Elaka Nartiang in West Jaintia Hills breathed her last after giving birth to a child in a house adjacent to the Ummulong-CHC, to where she was originally taken on May 19.
Narrating this unfortunate incident here on Tuesday, the victim’s mother Plorinda Suting said, “I pleaded the doctors and nurses to admit my daughter. But they insisted on shifting her to Jowai Civil Hospital at Ialong”.
“When we lost all hopes, it was one Brigita Nongrum, who asked us to bring my daughter to her house where the baby was delivered,” she said.
According to the mother, after the delivery, the condition of her daughter deteriorated and demanded immediate medical attention. She pleaded Dr Marshall Lamare to help her daughter but he refused, stating that he did not treat patients in private homes.
It may be mentioned here Klotilda, was under Dr Lamare’s observation during her pregnancy period.
“Even after repeated requests, he refused to come and see her,” Plorinda added.
She said that after a long wait, Dr Lamare finally agreed to treat Klotilda in the hospital.
“But by that time, it was too late since my daughter had already expired,” Suting said.
After this, she said that the doctor told her not to be sad since everyone commits mistakes.
Taking strong cognizance on the matter, the Meghalaya People United Front (MPUF) has demanded the State government to take stern action against doctors and nurses of the CHC to the extent of terminating their services.
“We demand the Health Minister to take stern action against two doctors (Dr Marshall Lamare and Dr Y Sumer) and two nurses (R Shylla and Aclarity) of the CHC for failing to perform their duty and uplift their pledge, which has cost a precious live,” MPUF president D Laloo said at a press conference.
According to him, the MPUF had also met the doctors on this matter.
“But the justification given by doctors to us was that they could not admit Klotilda on the ground that the hospital lacked equipments is unacceptable,” he said while informing the hospital also refused to produce the letter referring her to Ialong civil hospital.